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Editorial

By Irving Kulik, CCJA Executive Director

Our recent Congress 2017 in Toronto was a roaring success judging by the comments of so many of the delegates and participants at this, our 36th biennial. It was also a first, in that we made a direct partnership with a government department—in this case the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services. The contributions of Ministry staff, our affiliate, the Criminal Justice Association of Ontario (CJAO), and their volunteers, were unparalleled and truly incredible. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every member of the Toronto planning committee for their terrific efforts and drive over the course of the last 30 months since we began this project.

Congress 2017 centered on youth justice and there was something for every element and aspect of criminal justice. Sessions included adult corrections, restorative justice, radicalization and street gangs to name a few. The session discussing the issue of cannabis legalization was so over-subscribed we could have used a room twice as large. Clearly the programme touched all the contemporary issues facing criminal justice practitioners and researchers. Congress 2017 had 600 registered delegates representing every province as well as Yukon, Australia and the United States. Delegates came from governments at the provincial and federal levels, social agencies, as well as academia and police services.

The opening keynote address by Professor Tony Doob, attended by an overflowing crowd of about 700 including many volunteers, set forth the historical and future legislative agenda for youth justice. Robb Nash was very entertaining; his message was also deeply moving. The same applied to the TIFF youth presentation and the closing demonstration and talk by Jay Mandarino and his volunteers. Many a session brought tears to the eyes of delegates hearing of the challenges and caring responses to the needs of our troubled and frequently at-risk youth. Finally, MP Anthony Housefather challenged delegates to get involved in the legislative process during his luncheon address, which struck a chord judging by the response. We thank each and every presenter at Congress.

In closing I should mention and congratulate our CCJA Award winners. John Braithwaite was presented with the inaugural Willie Gibbs Lifetime Achievement Award for his many decades of service to the Canadian Criminal Justice Association (CCJA). Indeed, the award celebrates John as a living legend in CCJA. Dr. Christopher Schneider received the Public Education Award for his tremendous efforts in educating the public on criminal justice issues. The Antony Holland Award was given to William Head on Stage for bringing the value of theatre to criminal justice and rehabilitation.

As Congress 2017 came to a close we announced that Congress 2019 will be co-hosted in Quebec City with our colleagues at the Societé de Criminologie du Québec. The event will be taking place November 5-9, 2019 at Hotel Le Concorde on the historic Grande Allée, just steps from Old Québec. I hope to see many of you there!

Irving Kulik

Abstracts

A tremendous turnout graced the 36th Canadian Congress at Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel, October 24-27. Organized by the Ontario Criminal Justice Association (OCJA) in partnership with the CCJA and the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services, this congress took a bold step forward by focussing attention on youth and justice rather than youth and crime. This contextual reframing is deemed critically important given the evidenced relationship of crime to poverty, marginalization, hopelessness & despair, and racism. The innovative theme evidenced a shift from crime-centric to social-justice approaches for youth. Here are some highlights!

CCJA INTERVIEW WITH CENTENNIAL COLLEGE’S MOCK COURT

Ontario’s Centennial College students demonstrated the Mock Court experiential approach to learning by conducing a portion of a mock trial presided over by the Honourable Justice David P. Cole, who provided a debriefing that offered valuable advice and insight to these justice leaders of the future! This interview was conducted pre- and post-Congress.

November is Crime Prevention month in Manitoba. The MCJA recognizes this Provincial Proclamation each year by hosting our Annual Crime Prevention Breakfast (CPB) in early November. This year’s topic was very timely and relevant for all Canadian citizens, Refugees and Immigrants. This year, once again, we congregated at the beautiful Fort Garry Hotel in downtown Winnipeg for the event. The hotel is in Treaty One Territory, the traditional lands of the Anishinaabe, Cree and Dakota peoples and homeland of the Metis nation.

The MCJA is constitutionally mandated to educate the public about crime, trends in crime, suppression of criminal activity and responses to current trends affecting the Criminal Justice system. One of the ways we accomplish our mission is to sponsor evening educational sessions, which we commonly refer to as our Speaker Series evenings. We were extremely pleased to present one such evening on June 8, 2017 at the historic University of Winnipeg. Our speaker that nite was Mr. Joe Roberts.

This short article by François Boillat-Madfouny, a criminal law graduate student and member of the CCJA Policy Review Committee, focuses on sexual assaults and severe intoxication. The author notes a distinction between factual consent and legal consent. Within this framework, Boillat-Madfouny explores a perceived justice gap for intoxicated sexual assault victims and proposes statutory changes. Boillat-Madfouny points out that Bill C-51, which aims to clarify certain provisions of the Criminal Code relating to sexual assault, is a missed opportunity for meaningful reform since the question of intoxication and legal capacity to consent is not being tackled.

Criminality prevention strategies are on the cutting edge of crime control reform efforts in Canada. There is a growing consensus that we must shift away from the primacy of a criminal justice system that is overwhelmingly reactive, addresses only the symptoms of deeper social problems, and has shown to discriminate against racialized and low socio-economic populations. The future of an effective and just national crime control policy must be built upon a preventative approach, especially one that delivers much-needed services to our most vulnerable populations. This article reports on one such initiative: SMU PALS, an innovative social developmental program that matched Saint Mary’s University students with children, ages 5-12, from disadvantaged, high-risk environments to address a wide range of criminogenic risk factors.

CMNCP – SUPPORTING CANADIAN MUNICIPALITIES

This article was written by three authors. Some of the information is based on different CMNCP documents including those produced by staff from the University of Ottawa on behalf of CMNCP.

For the past 10 years, the Canadian Municipal Network on Crime Prevention has made it its mission to support municipalities across Canada to achieve community safety and wellbeing through the implementation of proven crime prevention strategies that complement enforcement and the criminal justice system. Using evidence-based programs and mentorship, CMNCP provides municipalities with the support and direction they need to implement comprehensive upstream approaches that engender measurable reductions in crime and victimization while minimizing costs of enforcement. This article reports on CMNCP (Felix Munger) and illustrates the successful implementation of the evidence-based strategies on crime prevention of two municipalities: Waterloo Region, ON (Chris Sadeler) and City of Surrey, BC (Jacki Tokaryk).

FASD IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM: A CASE FOR POLICY REFORM IN SASKATCHEWAN
Alexandra Johnson
Undergraduate (Faculty of Arts, Human Justice), University of Regina)

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is often discussed both by researchers and policy-makers in the context of criminal justice, as research demonstrates that individuals with FASD are overrepresented in the justice system. In this article, Johnson argues that this overrepresentation is the result of exclusionary policies which are unresponsive to individuals with FASD because they do not accurately target their needs. This in turn, suggests Johnson, results in a lack of the types of programming needed to mediate numerous secondary challenges that significantly heighten an already elevated risk of conflict with the justice system for those with FASD.

LIFE AFTER JAIL
Kristen Prentice
Undergraduate, University of Regina

Kristen Prentice explores the issue of Indigenous street gangs in Canada within a framework of the racism, colonization, and economic exclusion faced by many Indigenous youth. These factors combine with the stigma of having a criminal record and low levels of educational attainment to make it difficult for indigenous street gang members to find employment upon release. This is complicated by the fact that a prison term moves one up in the gang, making recidivism quite likely. Noting that prison terms, court-imposed conditions, and anti-gang strategies do little to address the systemic issues that cause Indigenous youth to join gangs in the first place, this article calls for concerted investment in community-based programs.

Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the Association’s views, but are included to encourage reflection and action on the criminal justice system throughout Canada.